Best MVNO carrier 2025

The best MVNO carriers let you save on phone service by offering (nearly) all the benefits that you get with the 'Big Three' carriers, but at much lower prices. These MVNOs (Mobile Virtual Network Operators) "lease" network infrastructure from one or more mainstream service providers (e.g., T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T), which enables them to offer their services at competitive prices via a range of prepaid plans. Sure, these plans often lack bundled extras such as streaming services, but if you don't care about all that and just want reliable wireless connectivity, going prepaid is the right option.

Moreover, there are no complicated contracts, and you're free to switch service providers whenever you feel like. Signing up for an MVNO is extremely simple and can be done from the comfort of your home; simply go online, select a plan of your choice, and you're good to go. And if your smartphone offers eSIM support, you can get started in just a few minutes.

Our top pick continues to be Mint Mobile, which offers four simple yet feature-laden plans that you can pick from. Owned and operated by T-Mobile, Mint Mobile lets you save by offering its service in chunks of multiple months for which you must pay in advance. On the other hand, if you prefer the networks of Verizon or AT&T, you can take a look at Visible or Cricket Wireless, respectively. Another solid choice is Ultra Mobile, which includes perks that make it suitable for students or just about anyone wanting to save some cash.

At a glance

Best overall

Having been fully owned and operated by T-Mobile for a while now, Mint Mobile still remains the best prepaid carrier out there. It offers excellent coverage via four flexible plans, all available at extremely affordable prices. Mint Mobile is a unique MVNO, since it requires you to purchase at least three months of service upfront. It also manages to keep things fresh by regularly updating its offerings to meet the ever-changing needs of consumers. Although Mint Mobile has essentially the same network strengths and weaknesses as most other T-Mobile MVNOs but for the most part, its coverage should be solid for majority of the customers. Fortunately, T-Mobile's network is arguably one of the fastest in the United States, and with 5G, among the most advanced too.

You can purchase service for up to a year, which is how you can save the most, at an effective price of $25 per month for 20GB of data. If you only need 5GB of data, you can go for the base plan that costs $15 per month. On the other hand, if you require more data each month, you can get the unlimited plan that now has unlimited high-speed data and 10GB of dedicated hotspot data. This plan has an introductory rate of $30 per month for three months, with renewals costing $35 per month. But if you sign up for a year, you can lock in this introductory rate (before limited-time promotional discounts) for the full year.

You can bring your own T-Mobile device to Mint Mobile as long as it has 4G LTE as well as VoLTE support. If you're not certain, you can simply confirm it via the carrier's online compatibility checker tool, but most unlocked GSM-network phones should work fine. Once you get your SIM card, you can activate it using the Mint Mobile app. If you want to buy a new phone you can do that too, as the carrier sells a variety of phones ranging from budget options to flagships.

Best cheap pick

Tello is a simple and straightforward prepaid provider that lets you configure data and talk time minutes for your plan. You get unlimited texts on all of the plan combinations and as we saw in our Tello review, phone compatibility is also quite strong, all thanks to the T-Mobile network. If you primarily use Wi-Fi at home and just need a little data for some situations, the 2GB 'Economy' plan can be a great option. Even when paired with unlimited calling, it'll cost you just $10 per month.

For heavy users, the 10GB 'Smart' plan is a solid place to start, with just enough data for light streaming, browsing social media, and some messaging. If you require more, the unlimited 'Data' plan takes that allotment to 35GB (maximum cap), which is more than sufficient for most use cases. Even if you use it all, you're not cut off; just the speeds are reduced. While it may not be fast enough for YouTube, you can text and email just fine.

Tello's plans can be customized but if you want to keep things easier, you can just pick from one of the four pre-configured plans. Among them, the 'Economy' plan detailed above costs $10 per month, with 2GB of data and unlimited talk and text. Then there's the 'Value' plan with 5GB and 'Smart' plan with 10GB data, at monthly costs of $14 and $19, respectively. The unlimited 'Data' costs $25 per month and has a maximum high-speed data cap of 35GB. That said, do note that all prices are before taxes and fees.

Best for unlimited

Owned and operated by Verizon, Visible keeps things simple by offering a trio of incredible unlimited plans to pick from, and very little to complicate your choice. The starter plan (which is just called Visible) is comparable to the carrier's old plan that we tested in our Visible review. It offers completely unlimited data on Verizon's LTE and 5G networks, although the data gets a lower priority than other traffic on the carrier. Even then, the speeds should be sufficiently high for most consumers to use their smartphones sans any noticeable restrictions. There's a good reason Visible has one of the best cell phone plans out there, thanks to unlimited talk, text, and data. It also packs unlimited hotspot data at a speed of 5Mbps, and all this costs just $25 per month, before any limited-time discounts.

The next plan (called Visible Plus) adds unlimited premium data to keep speeds as fast as possible even in congested areas. Visible Plus has a regular price of $35 per month before discounts and also enables access to Verizon's 'Ultra-Wideband' 5G for blazing-fast speeds with C-band or mmWave coverage. It adds some international roaming options & international calling options, upgrades the unlimited hotspot data speed to 10Mbps, and includes up to 1080p video streaming. Finally, there's the newest top-tier plan (called Visible Plus Pro) that has unlimited hotspot data at 15Mbps, smartwatch service (only available with Apple Watch), calling to over 85 countries and unlimited texting to more than 200 countries, and up to 4K video streaming. Priced at $45 per month before any promotional discounts, it's ideal if you need lots of data.

Device compatibility on Visible is a bit more limited than some other carriers, as your phone will need to be compatible with VoLTE on Verizon and support all the required bands with the carrier. Majority of the top-selling Android phones will work on Visible without any issues, but some older or a bit more obscure phones may or may not be compatible, so make sure you use the carrier's BYOD tool before moving forward.

Best for customization

US Mobile starts you off with a basic 'Light' plan that's priced at a mere $10 per month and comes with 2GB of premium data, along with unlimited talk and text. You can also add international calling to this option. Moving up, there are three unlimited plans having a wide range of goodies, with the base Unlimited Flex plan only available for a full year.

The two higher unlimited offerings are called Unlimited Starter and Unlimited Premium, and these cost $25 and $44 per month (before factoring limited-time promotional savings), respectively, offering everything from unlimited talk and text to loads of premium and hotspot data. They're also available annually for more savings, if you prefer that. If you get three lines with the top-tier plan, you can also go for a subscription bundle (priced at $15 per month) offering services such as Audible, Hulu, and PlayStation Plus. It's also worth mentioning that both unlimited plans have discounts if you sign up for multiple lines.

Another interesting offering by US Mobile lets you buy chunks of data (e.g., 2GB at $10 per month), which can be then shared across lines (the first line's price is included) on multiple devices, including tablets. US Mobile uses the networks of both T-Mobile and Verizon to provide its service, and its prices include all the taxes and fees.

Best for families

There are three major carriers in the U.S., each offering a largely similar level of coverage by the numbers. However, if you live or work out in the country, there might be certain areas where AT&T's network works better in comparison to those of Verizon and T-Mobile. If that's the case, you (and your family members!) can still take advantage of prepaid savings with Cricket Wireless. Owned and operated by AT&T, this carrier gives you five main phone plans starting with a 5GB plan, then a 10GB plan, and finally three unlimited options. All but the base plan come with multi-line discounts as well as autopay savings.

The $55 per month middle unlimited plan keeps things straightforward with unlimited talk, text, and data. It has hotspot data as an optional add-on but offers nationwide 5G access, unlimited data, and 2GB of cloud storage. If you want more, the $60 per month plan upgrades your unlimited data to premium, so your speeds stay higher even on crowded towers. It also comes with 15GB of dedicated hotspot data, 150GB of cloud storage, as well as ad-supported Max. All of the plans can access AT&T's nationwide 5G network. The $40 per month base unlimited plan just offers unlimited data, and nothing else.

AT&T's network is compatible with most of the unlocked phones so if you already own a device, there's a good chance you can bring it aboard. The carrier also sells a range of mid-range devices, including both Android phones and iPhones, so if you want a high-end device, you'll have to buy or finance it unlocked.

Best international perks

The majority of best MVNO carriers are lower-cost alternatives that don't offer a lot more when compared to their base carrier(s). However, Google Fi Wireless uses the T-Mobile network in the United States for great overall coverage. While just a few phones are compatible with its 'Designed for Fi' feature (for automatic switching to open Wi-Fi networks whenever they are available), if you happen to have a compatible device such as the Google Pixel 9 or the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, you should have solid network range with full 5G access.

Google Fi Wireless offers three unlimited plans called Unlimited Essentials, Unlimited Standard, and Unlimited Premium. These offer 30GB, 50GB, and 100GB of high-speed data, respectively. You also get connectivity for select smartwatches, Google's VPN, and other features like spam blocking. Of these, the higher two plans come with loads of dedicated hotspot data, international data usage in Mexico and Canada, and more. If you get the highest plan, you get international data usage in more than 200 countries, 100GB of cloud storage via Google One, and a free six-month subscription of YouTube Premium. Apart from these, there's also a Flexible plan that costs just $20 per month. With this plan, you still only pay for the data you use up and never for more than 6GB (for one user), thanks to the 'Bill Protection' feature. After the 15GB on the Flexible plan, your data speeds will be reduced, but you can always add more high-speed data at the time for $10 per GB.

The biggest feature that sets Google Fi Wireless apart is international service on the Unlimited Premium plan. If you're traveling in any of the over 200 supported countries, your data cost will be the same as it is at home. You'll also be getting unlimited texts but will need to pay $0.20 per minute for calls, along with 50GB of high-speed data.

Best for students

If you're a student and want to save on your phone service, Ultra Mobile is arguably among the best options you can go with. This MVNO uses T-Mobile's network infrastructure to offer reliable nationwide coverage and gives you six affordable prepaid plans to choose from. The base plan comes with 4GB of high-speed 5G data, unlimited talk and text, Mexico and Canada usage, shared mobile hotspot, and more, all for just $19 per month. Going up, the higher plans offer anywhere from 8GB to unlimited (capped at 35GB) high-speed 5G data, with the top two plans also coming with 10GB or 25GB of dedicated mobile hotspot data.

All of Ultra Mobile's plans come with unlimited talk service to more than 90 international destinations around the world. In addition to that, the stater plan has $1.50 of international calling credit (monthly), and $5 of international roaming credit (one-time), with the top-tier plan increasing both of these credit allotments to $15. This makes Ultra Mobile a solid choice for international students wanting to stay in touch with friends and family back home. You can also pay upfront for a longer service duration (three, six, or 12 months) to save even more.

Apart from these primary plans, Ultra Mobile offers a lightweight plan that includes goodies like unlimited talk service to over 90 international destinations across the globe, and 500MB of high-speed data, at an effective price of $13 per month. However, this plan is only available if you pay upfront for at least three months of service.

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How to choose

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Moving away from the 'Big Three' carriers can be a good way of saving on your phone bill by stripping away services you don't need. You can find an MVNO that offers great coverage in your area and utilizes a network you already know, such as Verizon or T-Mobile. It can also be a good way to try a new network with one of the best Android phones, that too without spending too much money or time moving over numbers.

A carrier like Google Fi Wireless manages to pack in extras for consumers who require great coverage and data abroad. At the same time, an MVNO like Visible focuses on offering data without any limits. We also quite like Tello, which allows you to customize your plan as you want and is easily among the most affordable prepaid service providers in the country. With these MVNOs, you can try out the different networks without any hassles, as there are no contracts to deal with.

Overall, Mint Mobile continues to be among the best choices, as long you don't mind paying upfront for at least three months of service. Mint Mobile's offerings come in four sizes so just about anyone should be able to find something that fits their needs well. On top of that, Mint Mobile's family plans make your service renewals a lot more manageable by offering you 12-month rates at three-month renewals. Now that it's fully owned by T-Mobile, we might see some changes in the future but at least for now, we can recommend Mint Mobile to most users.

• MVNO deals: Mint Mobile | Visible | Boost | Tello | Cricket Wireless